Fitness Trackers and Smartwatches Attract Totally Different Groups

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Fitness trackers seem to have gone mainstream — one in 10 adults
in the United States now owns a fitness band — but it's much more
uncommon for people to own smartwatches, according to a new
national survey on consumer trends.

The survey of 5,000 U.S. adults, released Jan. 6, shows that
people across the country are buying fitness trackers, which
monitor activities such as steps taken, calories burned and time
slept. The report found that 36 percent of people who own a
fitness tracker are between 35 and 54 years old, 41 percent have
an average income of more than $100,000 and 54 percent are women.

In contrast, just 2 percent of people in the U.S. own a
smartwatch, and smartwatch owners are younger and less wealthy
than fitness tracker wearers, according to the report. Most (69
percent) of people who own a smartwatch are ages 18 to 34, 48
percent earn less than $45,000 yearly and 71 percent are male.
[ 10
Fitness Apps: Which Is Best for Your Personality? ]

The reason for the different demographics may have to do with
public awareness of different devices, said Wes Henderek,
director of Connected Intelligence for the NPD Group, a market
research firm.

When
fitness trackers first hit stores in early 2013,
"fitness fanatics and athletes" bought them in droves, Henderek
told Live Science.

"Those people were really disappointed with the products
initially," Henderek said. "The stuff that those fitness trackers
were tracking was pretty basic, counting things like steps and
calories. A lot of them stopped using fitness trackers altogether
because it wasn't telling much more than they already knew."

Now, two years later, more companies and improved products have
entered the fitness tracker market. With increased awareness
and choices, people — even those who only exercise casually — are
buying fitness trackers.

"For many people, they're great," said Carol Ewing Garber, a
professor of movement sciences and education at Columbia
University, who was not involved with the survey. "It gives them
a way to really evaluate how much exercise and physical activity
they're getting, which is really essential for health."

It's surprising that women make up a slightly bigger share of the
fitness tracker market than men, because generally, "women are
less active," said Garber, who is also the president of the
American College of Sports Medicine. But women also tend to be
more aware of their health and weight than men are, and fitness
trackers may be a good way for them to monitor their activities,
Garber said.

"People buying smartwatches are still early adopters," Henderek
said. Most of these adopters are young men who haven't started
earning that much money yet. But, like the early fitness
trackers, smartwatches are still in the beginning phases of
development.

Many smartwatches offer features similar to those of smartphones
— they allow people to check email and text messages and go
online, Henderek said. But the watches tend to be difficult to
use, are uncomfortably large and have a short battery life, he
said. Moreover, smartwatches don't offer something unique,
meaning they don't have a corner on any market, he said.

"It's exciting to see the interest in these devices," Garber
said. "Hopefully, this isn't a case where people are getting the
devices and trying them out and then leaving them on their desks
because they don't work."

The NPD Group plans to survey people about wearable technology
buying habits every six months. Going forward, the survey will
also include other wearable technologies, such as eyewear like
Google
Glass, and smart clothing, Henderek said.